LAKE GARDA AND GARDA DOC
Italy’s largest lake, Garda, enjoys a Mediterranean climate and is caressed by myriad winds. Its vineyards are bathed in light bouncing off the water’s surface. Gently sunkissed bunches of grapes ripen in favourable conditions where balmy temperatures allow olive trees, lemons, and capers to thrive.
Writers and poets through the ages have sung Garda’s praises, with its picturesque villages, castles, winding lanes, and serene atmosphere. Catullus, Goethe, Kafka, Rilke, D’Annunzio… and even Churchill himself was immortalised as he painted a lake scene. This backdrop of history, beauty and culture, in a geographical position that is ideal for winegrowing, is the birthplace of Garda DOC.
Winemaking dates back to at least the 1st Century BC here, but Garda DOC is a young umbrella appellation, created to promote wines from three cities: Verona, with six DOCs; Brescia, with three, and Mantua, with one. Three different cities in close proximity, each of them stunningly beautiful and on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Overlooking them all is Lake Garda, with its charm exuding a sense of happiness, relaxation and serendipity. This is the location for the ten historic appellations that have found a new home in Garda DOC. Wine and food go hand-in-hand here, set against a landscape that succeeds in being beloved by foreigners whilst retaining its typically Italian lifestyle intact.
FOCUS ON GARDA DOC PINOT GRIGIO
Garda DOC covers 31,100 hectares, 3,340 of which are dedicated to Pinot Grigio (11%). 28 wineries in the consortium produce this wine, more than half in the Verona area, the rest equally split between Brescia and Mantua. The producers and the Consorzio alike believe strongly in the potential of this varietal in the DOC area and believe in its potential as a premium wine.
Not much is known about when Pinot Grigio arrived here, though it comes from Burgundy originally and legend has it that Napoleon himself introduced it to Italy. Pinot Grigio is remarkably adaptable to soil and climate conditions, a quality that has carried it around the world. It prefers limestone soils, which are widespread in this zone, particularly in the morainic hills between Verona, Brescia and Mantua. In the areas closest to the mild micro-climate of Lake Garda, with marked temperature fluctuations, it makes wines with elegance and finesse. Areas further away produce a more structured, less fragrant Pinot Grigio.
As Garda DOC oenologists note, “Pinot Grigio has a distinctive identity; this can be seen in the fruit itself, which is neither white, nor red, but greyish. It’s delicate and requires specific procedures, like being picked and transported in the cooler morning hours. It’s a completely different world, in neither the white or red wine spheres. Its passage into the cellar is a crucial step: must preparation and pressing requires a delicate touch. There are no second chances with this grape variety, if you want to honour its uniqueness.”
Broadly, there are two different styles of wine: one more modern – simple and honest – enjoyed by younger wine enthusiasts; and a more traditional style, structured, austere and ageworthy, which is popular with a more mature audience. Pinot Grigio can be enjoyed as an aperitif or with seafood or lake fish antipasti. It pairs wonderfully with local dishes, such as bigoli (pasta) with sardines or risotto with tench; pumpkinstuffed tortelli; whitefish in vegetable sauce, or pike with sauce and polenta.